~ my life in sevilla

Tag Archives: fiestas

I’ve only missed Corpus here four times in 24 years: once when I was in Granada, another time when I was in Lisbon, then London in 2015, and *that other time* when I was too sick on chemo to go out. Since my first ever Corpus I have followed the advice of my friend (and one of my first English students here) Agustín, who told me the best part of Corpus here is getting up super early and walking the rosemary and flower petal strewn procession route before the procession starts (and everything gets trampled underfoot).

This year we got an even earlier start than usual and invited new pal Elaine to join us. And bonus! We actually came across the guys who were strewing the rosemary (a first for me). Although as lovely as always, there were fewer decorated balconies than on previous years, and it was also sad not to have our usual post-walk coffee & toast at the Horno San Buenaventura (which closed all its brances this past year). But as usual, we left while the procession was in full swing, heading home before the HEAT became too much. Here are some pics (and one vid)…

I hadn’t planned on going to the feria in Córdoba this year. But when I saw Roma @artsylife posting pics from Málaga on her Instagram, and when she said she wouldn’t make it to Sevilla this visit, we decided to meet up for a day in Córdoba. So Peter and I caught an early train and, after meeting up with Roma for a nice lunch at La Regadera (warning: never try to eat at any ferias) we got a taxi to the fairground. And well, it was HOT. But we managed to find a couple of nice air-conditioned casetas to enjoy a cold beer and watch people dancing. Like in Jerez (and unlike Sevilla) the casetas in Córdoba are all open to the public. But unlike any other feria I’ve been too, many also have A/C. Bliss. Click through to see more pics…Continue reading →

This year’s Feria de Abril portada commemorates the 25th anniversary of the 1992 Expo and, imho, really couldn’t be uglier. This year there are two notable firsts. The Alumbrao (turning on of the lights and official opening) has been moved ahead to Saturday midnight, instead of the traditional Monday, in order to pack another weekend into the festivities. And there will be a Tourist Tent (caseta) for visitors, which will hopefully help them feel more welcome. A third possible first remains to be seen… whether my friend Cinta will be able to turn me into a Sevilla feria lover. She thinks she can. Game on! 😉

I missed last year’s Corpus Christi in Sevilla because I was in London stuffing my face getting to know other Foodie Hub members and otherwise enjoying The City. And weirdly, I found myself missing it. I’ve only missed Corpus here thrice before: once when I was in Granada, another time when I was in Lisbon, and *that other time* when I was too sick on chemo to go out.

But I’ve always followed the advice of my friend (and one of my first English students here) Agustín, who told me the best part of Corpus here is getting up super early and walking the rosemary and flower petal strewn procession route before the procession starts (and everything gets trampled underfoot). This year – bonus! – I also happened to see the Cristo de la Cena (Last Supper) procession on its way to the Cathedral, where the paso is left at the Archbishop’s Palace until the end of the day’s ceremonies. I even got a short vid of it on Instagram…

Wednesday is Ladies Day at the Jerez Feria, and it’s the day I always like going to my favourite feria in Spain. Here are a few pics, and you can also see a lovely video of some lovely ladies dancing on my Instagram.

This is probably as close as I’m going to get to the Feria de Abril this year. Well, other than to maybe stop by one afternoon to take horse photos. Ania and I were invited to a pre-feria event at the Taberna del Alabardero and both of us agreed that it was a much more pleasant experience than the actual feria here.

I love Corpus in Sevilla. I’ve also spent this holiday in Lisbon and Granada, and there was also one unforgettable Corpus in Sevilla when I stupidly decided to move furniture (with 38º temps, streets closed off, carrying heavy things for blocks while ON CHEMO). And another very memorable one many years earlier when my friend Lizzie was here and we got up hideously hungover after about two hour’s sleep and dragged our sorry butts out to do the whole pre-procession thing. So in comparison today was uneventful but fun. Did the usual going out early to walk the route though didn’t get out early enough to have the streets to ourselves (Peter came with me). But there’s just something special about walking on rosemary-strewn streets in the fresh morning air…